Three Disciples Are Challenged With Following Jesus (9:57-62).
The Lord's prayer in Luke 11:1-4 commences with, ‘Hallowed be Your Name' (by the bringing about of Your will in purifying Your people - Ezekiel 36:23-28), Your Kingly Rule come.' It is a prayer of dedication to the service of the Kingly Rule of God and a longing for the purifying of God's people. Here we are told of three men whose desire is for that service but who are challenged about their sufficient dedication.
It may be that we are to see in the calling of these three men an indication of Jesus' preparation for the wider ministry of the seventy. They were clearly men who already had some kind of commitment to Him and He is now pressing them to make it specific in view of the impending mission. If they were part of His planned seventy we can see why His call was so urgent.
It will be noted that in all three cases ‘homes' are involved. The first is told that he will have no home if he follows Jesus, the second wants to go home until his father has died, the third wants to go home to say ‘Goodbye'. Jesus is clearly laying a great stress on the fact that a man's home and family must not be allowed to be a hindrance to discipleship.
Analysis.
a As they went on the way, a certain man said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go” (Luke 9:57).
b Jesus said to him, “The foxes have holes, and the birds of the heaven have nests, but the Son of man has nowhere to lay his head” (Luke 9:58).
c He said unto another, “Follow me.” But he said, “Lord, allow me first to go and bury my father” (Luke 9:59).
c But he said to him, “Leave the dead to bury their own dead, but you go and publish abroad the Kingly Rule of God” (Luke 9:60).
b And another also said, “I will follow you, Lord, but first allow me to bid farewell to those who are at my house” (Luke 9:61).
a But Jesus said to him, “No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the Kingly Rule of God” (Luke 9:62).
Note the interesting parallels. In ‘a' the man promises to follow Jesus wherever He goes and in the parallel Jesus warns about not doing so. In ‘b' the man is told basically that he will have no home, and in the parallel the man is loth to leave his home behind. In ‘c' the man wants leave to ‘bury his father' and in the parallel Jesus tells him to leave the dead to bury their own dead.